In this Monday, Aug. 6, 2012 file photo Keitani Graham of Micronesia competes against Charles Edward Betts of the United States, right, during the 84-kg Greco-Roman wrestling competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics, in London. An official familiar with the decision says IOC leaders have dropped wrestling from the program for the 2020 Olympics. In a surprise decision Tuesday Feb. 12, 2013, the official tells The Associated Press that the IOC executive board decided to retain modern pentathlon and remove wrestling instead.AP Photo

When word got out Tuesday morning that the International Olympic Committee had dropped wrestling from the program for the 2020 Summer Games, the word that seemed to sum up the reaction was surprise.

Fans and wrestling insiders alike were caught completely off guard by the stunning announcement.

"My first reaction was surprise. My second was anger and the third is, it's not over. I know it sounds a little cliche but they picked on the wrong sport," said Bill Crum, who is the senior consultant with Beat the Streets and the state co-chairman for New York State USA Wrestling.

Crum -- a former vice president of USA Wrestling who served on its board from 1983-2003 -- added that he thinks that dropping the sport won't be so easy.

"There are people all over the world who are passionate (about) what wrestling does for individuals and character and obviously the ability to stand up for oneself," said the Manhattan resident, who served as the assistant competition manager for wrestling in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. "This won't be taken lightly. There is reaction from all over the world and Russia is leading the charge." 

ADDED SHOCK 

Wrestling has been a staple of the ancient and modern Olympics, which only added to the shock.

"It's disappointing because it seems the Olympics have changed," echoed former Monsignor Farrell and Empire State Games scholastic team coach Lou DeStefano. "With professional athletes participating, it has taken away from true Olympic sports. It seems they're more interested in guys like LeBron James, Michael Phelps and Tiger Woods playing in the Olympics and (doing) commercials as opposed to supporting the amateurs in the (traditional Olympic) sports."

Mike Moyer, executive director of the National Wrestling Coaches Association, told the Washington Post that wrestling is currently the sixth most popular high school boys' sport in the United States, with more than 270,000 participants.

"What's so stunning is how a decision of this magnitude could be made without any forewarning," Moyer told the Post. "You'd like to think the Olympics would be more inclusive than exclusive. But this decision absolutely impacts wrestling at every level all the way down the grass-roots level."

"I found out from my social media blowing up. On Facebook, a lot of my colleagues and friends and the coaching community all expressed their displeasure," said St. Joseph by-the-Sea wrestling coach Jeff Vetrano. "I was very surprised as well. I know wrestling is one of the oldest sports. I know they kept some other sports that might be more obscure as opposed to wrestling."

American Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner, who upset Russian great Alexander Karelin in the 2000 Games, was naturally among those displeased.

"It's the IOC trying to change the Olympics to make it more mainstream and more viewer-friendly instead of sticking to what they founded the Olympics on, and that was basically amateur sports," Gardner told The Associated Press.

Judging by reactions reported in various news outlets on Tuesday, many in the wrestling community just can't fathom why wrestling was on the chopping block. According to an email circulated by USA Wrestling, wrestling is one of the most diverse sports in the world, with nearly 200 nations participating.

"You now have Russia, the United States and Iran all on the same page. When was the last time those three countries agreed about anything?" asked Crum. 

HIGHEST LEVEL 

"It's the pinnacle of our sport. Although most wrestlers won't make the Olympics or wrestle in Division I, you need to have that highest achievement (available to aim for)," said DeStefano. "With Olympic wrestling, that is our professionals. To take that away, it's disappointing."

"When you see the elite athletes, it pushes our sport to a new level and it gives everyone a chance to strive for something," said Vetrano.

Although the news is damaging, it certainly isn't the end of wrestling in the Olympics.

Wrestling will now join seven other sports in applying for inclusion in 2020. The others are a combined bid from baseball and softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu, a sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts. They will be vying for a single opening in 2020.

The IOC executive board will meet in May in St. Petersburg, Russia, to decide which sport or sports to propose for 2020 inclusion. The final vote will be in September in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

"Nobody knew and I can say that because I spoke to the people who could have known," said Crum, who thought some politics might have been involve in the vote. "There are a lot of people who are not going to take this lying down." 